“Win now or plan for the future? I choose to plan ahead” -Jimbo

Archers boss, again, voiced out his plans for the team and assured fans that they would be pushing for a top 5 finish this and in the coming seasons. The team management have been recently criticized to lack the effort in bringing in good proven talent to help out in a few positions. The team has been lacking the world class talent ever since Varela and Verhassel retired a few seasons ago. Now that the team has relied on the old guard of Edu Iglesias, Marcos Bueno, and Lucio Sarmiento and many of the fans think that they are all past their prime and should be replaced soon. Though management have made certain improvements, many still think that the team does not have the financial capabilities to rival many other big clubs in signing great proven talent.

Because of this, team manager Jimbo has devised a strategy both in spending and buying that give importance to youth rather than developed talent. The recent purchase of Gaspar Alonso and the development of other young players like Juan Mosquera, Cesar Agudo, Enrique Largo, Celestino Heredia and Alfredo Guerrero shows the strategy already in action. Though the majority are defenders, Jimbo sees them as fundamental players for the team to build on.

“These players are going to be starters in the team. It will take time for them to have an impact in the senior team, especially with lots of teams choosing to spend on developed players instead of developing their own players. It’s like a family here. The youngsters can grow with the senior players and are not afraid to make mistakes.” he told AP

“Many teams like Diliman Ultimate Organization, Blue Wave FC, lions of munich, and Scape United use a different style from ours. They win now and that is great for them. We do not have the same financial capacity like they do so we chose this strategy. It brings profit and at the same time we get younger. We have different styles that have their pros and cons. We just like this strategy better.” Jimbo added

The Archers supremo flies to Iloilo to attend a ground breaking ceremony for a new Archers youth facility and to scout young talent in the area. The facility will also serve as the team’s headquarters for scouting in the region.